Mahmoud Abbas

Richard Drew/Associated Press

News about Mahmoud Abbas, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Jan. 1, 2015

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas requests that Authority join International Criminal Court, move that opens up possibility of war-crimes prosecutions of Israeli officials; request, condemned by American officials as excessive, follows failure of United Nations Security Council resolution demanding end to Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory by 2017. MORE

Jan. 1, 2015

Editorial criticizes Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas for political actions that may further dim any hopes of a two-state solution; contends Abbas's decisions to both force a losing vote on Palestinian statehood at United Nations Security Council and then to join International Criminal Court give Israeli hard-liners even more reason to reject new peace talks and could possibly push collapse of the authority itself. MORE

Dec. 24, 2014

Roger Cohen Op-Ed column describes speaking with Tzipi Livni, Israel's lead negotiator, about collapsed negotiations between Israel and Palestinians; notes that Livni attributes failure of negotiations to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, who soured talks both by joining 15 international agencies and announcing reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah. MORE

Nov. 19, 2014

Editorial expresses horror at murder of four men, including three rabbis, at synagogue complex in neighborhood of West Jerusalem; maintains it is tragedy for all Israelis and Palestinians, as the two communities appear increasingly locked in cycle of hatred that makes permanent peace seem impossible; calls on Palestinian Pres Mahmoud Abbas to make moral case that such brutality can only bring shame upon Palestinian people. MORE

Oct. 11, 2014

Editorial submits task of rebuilding Gaza after 50-day war that damaged homes, businesses and infrastructure presents sizable challenges; questions point of rebuilding when region will only be destroyed in next war; contends reconstruction must be linked to permanent cease-fire and be designed so that it strengthens Palestinian Authority and Mahmoud Abbas, moderates committed to peace with Israel, while weakening Hamas, Israel’s implacable enemy. MORE

Sep. 27, 2014

Palestinian Pres Mahmoud Abbas accuses Israel of failing to negotiate in good faith, calling on United Nations Security Council to press for a specific deadline to end Israeli occupation; speech at UN General Assembly conveys sense of outrage but is largely short on details, and does not include Abbas' own deadline for withdrawal. MORE

Sep. 8, 2014

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas assails Hamas at meeting of Arab League, accusing it of running shadow government in Gaza; remarks call into question durability of unity pact between the two factions, and potentially complicate reconstruction of Gaza Strip. MORE

Sep. 3, 2014

Hanan Ashrawi, member of the Palestine Liberation Organization, says Palestinian Pres Mahmoud Abbas has decided to shelve already moribund American-sponsored peace talks and join International Criminal Court; Abbas intends to seek Security Council resolution that would demand end to Israeli occupation within three years. MORE

Aug. 31, 2014

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas may use global stage of the annual United Nations General Assembly to publicly demand a deadline for ending Israel's occupation in Gaza, despite expectation that Israelis and their American allies will oppose the demand. MORE

Aug. 26, 2014

Pres Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority plans to present initiative that would bypass American-brokered negotiations with Israel to produce Palestinian state; it will give Israel a deadline to withdraw from occupied Palestinian territories. MORE

Aug. 13, 2014

News analysis; Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas is emerging as major player in Egyptian-mediated talks to end latest war in Gaza, becoming potential linchpin for Israel, Egypt and Hamas as they seek lasting arrangements Palestinian region. MORE

Jun. 23, 2014

Abduction of three Israeli teenagers in West Bank has significantly escalated tensions between Israeli and Palestinian leadership, raising fears of third intifada in West Bank and Gaza Strip; kidnapping has prompted Israel to unleash most intense West Bank crackdown in nearly a decade, claiming lives of four Palestinians; Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas has incurred unprecedented wrath for aiding in Israel's search for teenagers. MORE

Jun. 19, 2014

President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority denounces abduction of three Israeli teenagers and vows to help catch the kidnappers; pressure has mounted on him and has threatened to collapse his fraying reconciliation pact with the militant Islamic movement Hamas; Abbas makes it clear that the Palestinian Authority is assisting Israel in its search for the teenagers. MORE

Jun. 7, 2014

Editorial expresses cautious support for efforts by newly reconciled Palestinian groups Fatah and Hamas to form government; notes Israel's condemnation of reconciliation based on Hamas' violent past, but holds that reconciliation, while problematic in many ways, may offer only way forward for peace; urges United States and Europe to remain vigilant in monitoring Palestinian Pres Mahmoud Abbas's promise that new government will conduct itself peaceably. MORE

Jun. 3, 2014

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas swears in new government intended to reunite West Bank and Gaza Strip after seven years of political and social division; ceremony comes six weeks after Palestine Liberation Organization and militant Hamas movement signed pact paving way for the new government. MORE

May. 30, 2014

Pres Mahmoud Abbas of Palestinian Authority asks Prime Min Rami Hamdallah to form 'government of national consensus' that would unite warring Palestinian factions for first time in seven years; move could send Israeli-Palestinian relations into tailspin and would disrupt any prospect of resumption of American-brokered peace talks. MORE

May. 28, 2014

Memo From Jerusalem; Pope Francis returns from successful three-day trip to the Holy Land having navigated one of the world's most complex political minefields with a deft touch; elicited promise from Israeli Pres Shimon Peres and Pres Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority to jointly attend peace prayer service at the Vatican, a symbolic but important gesture following collapse of peace talks one month earlier. MORE

May. 26, 2014

Pope Francis invites Israeli Pres Shimon Peres and Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas to join him at his Vatican apartment for prayer and summit meeting, inserting himself directly into effort to bring about peace in Middle East; invitation, issued during visit to Jerusalem, underscores Francis' intention to reassert Vatican's role as arbiter of international diplomacy. MORE

May. 17, 2014

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas meets in London with Tzipi Livni, Israel's justice minister; it is first known face-to-face talks between two sides since American-brokered peace negotiations collapsed in April. MORE

May. 13, 2014

Sec of State John Kerry plans to meet with Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas in London; it will be the first meeting between the two since Obama administration said in April that it was going to pause diplomatic efforts and reassess the Middle East peace process. MORE

May. 9, 2014

Group of 17 human rights organizations including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International urge Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas to join the International Criminal Court, move strongly opposed by Israel and the United States. MORE

Apr. 27, 2014

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas issues formal statement calling the Holocaust 'the most heinous crime to have occurred against humanity in the modern era,' and expresses sympathy with victims' families; statement, which grew out of a meeting between Abbas and an American rabbi who promotes understanding between Muslims and Jews, is the first of such offering of condolences by Abbas. MORE

Apr. 26, 2014

News analysis; Israeli Prime Min Benjamin Netanyahu's suspension of negotiations with Palestinians was done with tacit blessing of United States as rebuke against Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas; collapse of negotiations leaves Israel in precarious position, however, since talks had helped contain violence and hold back European boycott. MORE

Apr. 23, 2014

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas issues renewed warning that if American-sponsored Middle East peace talks fail, he may dissolve the authority and hand sole responsibility for the West Bank back to Israel; says Israel has, in any case, deprived him of any real power to govern the territory. MORE

Apr. 7, 2014

Israeli Prime Min Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel will take its own 'unilateral steps' in response to the Palestinians’ move to join international conventions; clearly tries to lay blame for possible collapse of peace negotiations on his counterpart, Pres Mahmoud Abbas of Palestinian Authority, but leaves open a window for salvaging talks before their expiration date. MORE

Apr. 2, 2014

Middle East peace talks verge on a breakdown after Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas defies the United States and Israel by taking concrete steps to join 15 international agencies; move signals an attempt to gain benefits of statehood outside the negotiations process; actions appear to catch American and Israeli officials by surprise, and prompts Sec of State John Kerry to cancel a planned return to the region. MORE

Mar. 29, 2014

Editorial laments faltering of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks after nine months of intensive diplomacy; urges Israeli Prime Min Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Pres Mahmoud Abbas to consider whether they are willing to let the opportunity pass for making peace; holds if they cannot or will not agree on framework for negotiations, United States should put forward its own statement of principles. MORE

Mar. 26, 2014

Sec of State John Kerry plans to fly to Amman, Jordan, to meet with Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas; meeting comes as Middle East peace talks are threatened by confrontation over release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails. MORE

Mar. 24, 2014

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas indicates that he will not extend peace negotiations with Israel past March 29 unless Palestinian prisoners are released on that date as promised; Israel says it will not release prisoners unless talks are extended, leading to diplomatic impasse. MORE

Mar. 23, 2014

Palestinians are criticizing Pres Mahmoud Abbas for undertaking a campaign against one-time ally Muhammad Dahlan, former Fatah security chief who he now sees as a rival; critics say dispute comes at a delicate time when Abbas already faces a difficult diplomatic battle with Israel and the United States. MORE

Mar. 18, 2014

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas makes clear in meeting at White House that he is no closer to recognizing Israel as a Jewish state, language that Israeli Prime Min Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted be applied to peace treaty; refusal leaves Sec of State John Kerry in tight spot just weeks before deadline for a framework accord. MORE

Mar. 8, 2014

Secretary of State John Kerry makes unannounced visit to Jordan to consult King Abdullah II about Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations, even as Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas reiterates positions that underscore challenge Kerry faces. MORE

Feb. 17, 2014

About 300 Israeli students and youth leaders travel to Ramallah, West Bank, to meet Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas for conversation about peace process; Abbas's insistence on peace between Israel and Palestinians is welcomed by audience. MORE

Feb. 13, 2014

Israel rejects applications of Palestinian patients seeking treatment in Israel or the West Bank because paper bears logo 'State of Palestine' rather than 'Palestinian Authority'; Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinian president, ordered that the state logo be used on all official correspondence after he won status of nonmember observer state for Palestine at United Nations. MORE

Feb. 3, 2014

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas proposes that American-led NATO force patrol future Palestinian state indefinitely; suggestion, made to Sec of State John Kerry, comes at sensitive stage of six month long peace negotiations, as Kerry prepares to present core framework of peace deal. MORE

Jan. 29, 2014

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas says that he could accept Israeli military presence in West Bank for three-year transition period as part of peace deal, but that longer period is unacceptable; question of who will be responsible for security and for how long has been central to American-brokered peace talks. MORE

Jan. 3, 2014

Israeli Prime Min Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a harsh assessment of Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas and, implicitly, prospect of a Middle East peace agreement; statement comes as Secretary of State John Kerry arrives in Jerusalem. MORE

Oct. 8, 2013

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas expresses optimism that a peace agreement could be reached in the nine months allotted to the current round of negotiations in a rare meeting with Israeli politicians; Abbas alos pointedly avoids questions that proved provocative in the past. MORE

Aug. 7, 2013

Thomas L Friedman Op-Ed column praises Secretary of State John Kerry for getting Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table for the first time in five years, but notes that prospects for a deal are slim; warns Israel's Prime Min Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas that they will have to help each other face down their respective internal opponents if any progress is to be made. MORE

Jun. 24, 2013

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas accepts resignation of Prime Min Rami Hamdallah, who had asked to quit two weeks after being sworn into office. MORE

Jun. 22, 2013

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas asks Prime Min Rami Hamdallah to reconsider his decision to step down after just two weeks in office. MORE

Jun. 3, 2013

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas appoints Rami Hamdallah, current president of West Bank university, to serve as his next prime minister. MORE

May. 9, 2013

May. 6, 2013

Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority, arrives in Beijing seeking support from Chinese leaders just ahead of Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu's visit, but there are no plans for a meeting there between the two. MORE

Mar. 30, 2013

Mar. 22, 2013

Editorial praises Pres Obama's speech in Jerusalem, which was enthusiastically received by young Israelis; questions how Obama, Israeli Prime Min Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas will pursue peace, given that no clear-cut plan has been offered. MORE

Jan. 10, 2013

Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas meets in Cairo with Khaled Meshal, political chief of rival Hamas, but it is unclear if they are able to overcome any of differences that have fueled bitter five-year feud. MORE

Nov. 26, 2012

Op-Ed article by Yossi Beilin, former Israeli official and architect of Oslo Accords, calls on Israel and America to support Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas's bid for recognition of Palestinian statehood before United Nations; warns that blocking bid would marginalize Palestinian Authority and empower Hamas and other extremists. MORE

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An inability to travel freely between Gaza and the West Bank affects thousands of Palestinians, human rights groups say. Since Hamas came to power in Gaza, exit into Israel has been allowed only for humanitarian cases.

President Obama told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on Monday that the United States opposed the Palestinian Authority’s bid to join the International Criminal Court, the White House said.